Six years ago when I worked for someone else I got nabbed by the Dept Labour inspector for no fall protection on when I was higher then 8' off the ground I got a $480.00 fine and the company got a $4000.00 fine then the next year one of my crew fell off a roof broke three ribs and bruised himself up real good. we were lucky he fell on the soft grass instead of the concrete driveway or walkway.
I now always wear my fall gear, yes it slows me down but I would rather take my time and get to go home at the end of the day. Someone elses Christmas lights are not worth losing my life or just messing me up so I can't work anymore.

Six years ago when I worked for someone else I got nabbed by the Dept Labour inspector for no fall protection on when I was higher then 8' off the ground I got a $480.00 fine and the company got a $4000.00 fine then the next year one of my crew fell off a roof broke three ribs and bruised himself up real good. we were lucky he fell on the soft grass instead of the concrete driveway or walkway.
I now always wear my fall gear, yes it slows me down but I would rather take my time and get to go home at the end of the day. Someone elses Christmas lights are not worth losing my life or just messing me up so I can't work anymore.

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I guess that was the Canadian version of OHSA. I can imagine trying to keep a bunch of Frenchmen from falling off a roof could be quite a challenge. They must have a dozen inspectors to every Frenchmen who is allowed to go on the roof.

I'd like to be there to see just see how many Frenchmen it actually takes to screw in a light bulb.

By the way, I'm French and my grandfather was born in Canada. Born and raised in the most French state which is Maine. I miss all of the French jokes being told on a regular basis. Been in Texas for almost 20 years and have yet to hear a French joke. I probably have the only Hispanic looking kids with a French last name like Proulx in the whole state.

Most of our work is high steep gables so we started using a chicken ladder about three seasons ago and now I do almost all gable work from the roof. I start getting a little freaked out if I have to go up too high on a ladder anymore. I just feel a lot safer on the roof.

The chicken ladder takes all the danger out of roof work. You can pursue harnesses and rappelling if you like but its the hard way to go about it.

I bought a harness and some of the lighter arborist rope and it works great. I put my guy on a leash and he can work quickly with confidence knowing I have him secure. I only use this on steep roofs. This house had a bad roof with deteriorating shingles which made it even worse.

The peak we did with no harness but the roof ends were more difficult.

The goal of putting my guy on a leash with a safety harness is to add just enough resistance that he will not slide and lose his footing. If you have to tie in the rope every time we move to a different area you would lose money on every job you ever do. I'm past the peak of the roof with solid footing although it may not look like it. If my worker were to slip I would yank him backwards.

Once upon a time I could bench press 325 and still workout at the gym and run on a regular basis minus the last month. I can't work out and be sore at on roof tops where I get into spots where I need to use all my strength or stamina from time to time.

I actually just had a long conversation last night at the bar about this subject. One of the regulars owns a consulting company that goes around teaching the OSHA courses for construction and roofing. I brought up this thread on my phone and he had a field day reading it.

Why do people not respect us as they do other tradesmen? Because every Tom, Dick, and Harry doesn't think he can be a plumber or electrician!

The harness my guy is wearing is the same one in your kit. The big difference is I needed a long rope and went the arborist route. I also don't want a shock absorbing landyard because it will hinder my ability to yank my guy back out of harms way if I need to.

I have an eye hole on the end of my rope and use a arborist carabiner to attach to my worker. The kits were also over priced where I built my own kit for less.